Red Planet Jazz
by the-typing-kitsune
Summary: Twenty years after Spike's death, two new syndicates have risen up on Mars to take the place of the Red Dragons. While the Northern Star syndicate and the Blue Lily syndicate fight, Mars is falling apart under the strain. The Star need a hero. Guess who.
1. Prelude

Heh, this is my first story, please be kind to me and read + review! Oh, and by the way, I don't own Cowboy Bebop.

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The red velvet curtains are drawn back, revealing the shallow stage, illuminated by the spotlight. Each separate beam glances off the instruments of the sextet standing on stage: three trumpets, a drummer, one bass player, and their lead, a saxophone. He stares out at the assembled crowd and snaps his fingers at shoulder level, counting out the beat, which the drummer immediately picks up, tapping it out on the cymbal's edge. The bass sets the bottom line and he speaks, "I think it's about time we blow this scene; let's get everybody and their stuff together…Okay, 3, 2, 1, let's jam." And the trumpets start out on a descending rhythm, the sax joining in with a held note as they start up again. When his time comes, he throws his head back, white light shimmering off black hair, and launches into a brilliant saxophone solo of highs and lows, played straight from the soul. The cobra tattoo on his cheek and neck make him a prisoner from the Beta 3A-7 asteroid system; the deactivated LED chips implanted under his skin, serving as the cobra's red eyes, marks him a freed man.

The trumpets joined in, along with the drums, leading up to a firework ending, an explosion of sound. There was a moment of complete silence, then the crowd burst into applause, standing up. A few people cheered the players as they bowed to them, then the curtains closed and they started filtering to the exits. One rather odd-looking couple are in the audience, a girl and her escort. As they leave the theater, she looks up at her companion.

"It was good, wasn't it?" she says to him.

He looks down at her. "Yes, it was. He kind of reminds me of another saxophone player that we used to know…"

She smirks. "Yeah…" She keeps walking. "C'mon. We'll be late…"

He smiles to himself, flips his long hair over his shoulder, and follows her.

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Yeah, I know it's short, but I'll submit the 1st chapter after I get it typed up, sometime later. Please review!


	2. Chapter 1: Battle Royal

Here's Chapter 1! Enjoy!

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She sat outside, under the sun, light shimmering off raven hair. She sipped at her bubble tea and listened to her music, nodded to the rhythm coming from her earphones and seemed totally unconcerned with anything else. Of course, this was a front.

Her dark chocolate eyes darted back and forth as she leaned forward to take a sip, taking in note of all the disturbances on the street and surrounding area. As she finished her tea, she finally saw it, the thing she was waiting for.

Far away, silhouetted by the blue sky and white clouds, a human figure stood up, a long barreled gun set on a stand before him. On two other building-tops, two other silhouettes set up in the same manner. She slapped a few bills onto the metal-mesh table, stood up, and hopped the waist-high, wrought iron fence, sauntering down the street, slipping into an alley. With a casual glance over her shoulder, she leapt up and pushed off the wall, jumping up, tamping down, and leaping up again until she gained a grip on the edge of the building. Pulling herself up, she stayed low, picked up speed, and leapt from rooftop to rooftop. By sticking to the shadows, she made herself invisible until it was too late for her target. The sniper went down silently; she peered through a pair of his binoculars at the drama unfolding beneath her.

"Poor sap," she thought, as she watched the cannon fodder hand the envelope to the rat. "Ah well. There's no rest for the wicked I suppose." With that, she tossed the binoculars over her shoulder and sprinted off the building just as the other snipers opened fire on the man suddenly standing alone in a conveniently isolated area of the back-alley maze. Even before he had time to scream, she'd already scooped him up and was running away from the to-be site of the blast crater. The impact echoed off the walls, shaking loose dirt and frightening pigeons. She set the trembling man down gently, brushed herself off, and bent down to him, addressing him as he lay in the dust, knees unable to bear his weight.

"I suggest that you run for it, little guy, and that you keep this lesson in mind. It's not a good idea to mess with _any_ part of the Blue Lilies." She straightened up and tossed a chip to the ground in front of his nose. "Free pass for the next two months. I suggest you use the woolongs the right way this time." She turned, sketched a salute to him, and ran off, heading back for the ambush site.

At the edge of the crater, several men were examining the deep hole for any evidence of the man. She smiled evilly as she saw this and rushed in furiously, launching punches and kicks, turning the fight into a dance. In a span of five seconds, a third of the men were down, the rest just forming a defensive position. When half were lying unconscious in the dirt, the rat lost his nerve and threw a grenade her way. Plugging his ears and tightly closing his eyes, he sheltered behind some refuse and started counting to ten.

He only got to seven before she attacked.

He found himself stood on, arms twisted behind his back, face down in the dirt, her sibilant hiss winding its way into his mind.

"Where's the information?"

He whimpered and she raised him up, then slammed him down again.

"Let's try that again. Where's the information? And this time, think before you answer."

"I have powerful friends!" the man squeaked out.

"Wrong answer," she replied, deadly cool. She levered him up, turning him around, and slammed him against the dingy brick of the ambush wall with such force that more than one rotting crate fell out of its stack to shatter on the ground. She trained her eyes on him, and he audibly gulped. "One last chance before I start breaking bones."

"I…. i…i…it's in my pocket," he stuttered. She lifted one eyebrow then used a hand to fish in the inner pocket of his coat, eventually pulling out the envelope. After a cursory examination, she tossed him to the ground.

"Tell your boss that the Northern Star syndicate doesn't approve." She slipped the envelope into her messenger bag, wound up her music player's earphones, and sauntered off, disappearing. The man on the ground was too afraid to even twitch until she was out of sight.

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And that's it! I've decided to update once a week, but you get two parts 'cause the Prelude was so short. Please review! Well, 'till next week!

Oh, and for those of you who're wondering what's going on, don't worry! The plot will reveal more of itself in the next chapter!


	3. Chapter 2: Keep on Turning

Here's Chapter 2! And yeah, Spike's actually in it! Don't worry, you'll see… Oh, and I still don't own Cowboy Bebop. (Keep On Turning…)

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Two figures lay on the side of a grassy hill, shaded by a tree, staring at the stars. The park's landscape rolled peacefully away on either side of them until it reached the gates and walls. But even then, the greenery continued on, a contrast in some places to the towering skyscrapers. The angels loved all life, and here in Shangri-La, life ruled.

"More like the memory of life," Spike mused. He abruptly sat up, yawning and running his hand through his dark green hair. Beside him, Julia shifted and looked up at him with her blue eyes. Grinning wickedly, he reached down and took a few locks of her blond hair, quickly tying them into a knot. She slapped his hand away before the tangle got any worse and sat up to unknot it. Spike leaned back and watched the sky again with his brown eyes until Julia finished, then looked back down. She put a fist on her hip and glared at him. He smiled and leaned forward to kiss her.

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Night sky again. The stars have hardly shifted and Spike knows they'll never disappear fully; they still shine during the day, peeking out mischievously from behind the clouds. A light breeze blows across his skin and he shivers a little, pulling his heavy coat a little higher up to cover that shoulder. Nestled against his bare chest, Julia murmurs something and snuggles in a little closer. Spike sighs and shakes her shoulder, waking her up. He nods to the moon, how it's almost below the horizon.

They leave the park hand in hand, heading for Julia's apartment, not trying to beat the dawn, just strolling, enjoying the chillier air, the prelude to fall in Shangri-La. They take a short nap, making up for lost sleep, and eat a light lunch. Spike leaves Julia at about noon, heading for his own apartment. Safe inside his own castle, he seats himself at the window and stares out the glass, wondering, pondering at the apathy he now feels.

He has everything he could want. Julia loved him, they were together, and no crazy, sword-wielding maniac was after him.

But somehow, something was missing.

With a groan, he realizes what it is. No bounties, no excitement was in his life anymore. He blows a hefty sigh.

"I guess even Heaven can get boring after a while," he mutters. "I can't believe I miss getting shot at."

"I know what you mean," a voice unexpectedly answers.

Spike whirls around, hand groping for a gun that he knows isn't there; no evil is allowed in Shangri-La, so he thought he wouldn't need a weapon. His surprise visitor smirks and holds his hands up, shutting the apartment door with a foot. Spike eyes the door like it betrayed him. He'd spent a lot of time and effort making sure all the locks on it would make it impenetrable to all but the most stubborn angel…

With that thought, his eyes narrowed, and he turned his head to regard his intruder, who had taken a chair and was now lounging, looking at Spike with a pensive air.

"So," he says, "What are you going to do about it?"

Spike blinks. "About what?" he asks.

"Your boredom. The source of your lethargy."

Spike shrugs. The angel rolls his eyes and leans forward.

"Spike, I have a bargain for you. It'll definitely cure your boredom."

Spike looks at him harder. "What kind of bargain?"

"Think of it as a deal. Things are going downhill on Mars, did you know?"

"How can I know when I'm stuck here?"

It was the angel's turn to shrug. "I don't know. But I do know that Mars really needs a hero-of-sorts right now."

Spike stares at him, puzzled, until it dawns upon him. "Wait…You want me to go to Mars?!" The angel nods, and Spike waves his hands furiously in the air. "No Way. That wouldn't work at all."

The angel raises an eyebrow. "And why not?"

Spike lifts up a finger. "One. In case you hadn't noticed, I'm dead. Two." He lifts another finger. "What makes you think I wanna go back to Mars? And three." A third finger. "I've got Julia now; I can't just leave her."

The angel raises three fingers of his own. "Three. Julia already knows about this. She realizes there's a distinct possibility that you will accept my offer, and she's come to terms with that." He puts one finger down. "Two. Mars is your home. And besides, I know you like to be where the action is." He puts down another finger. "And one." The angel tilts his head to the side and looks at Spike. "Whatever makes you think you'll be going back as a spirit?" He puts down the last finger and considers his hand. "It looks like you're out of excuses."

Spike sits back and looks at the angel. "Alright. Lemme ask one question. Do I really have a choice?"

The angel smiles wickedly. "Of course not."

Spike rocks back and laughs. "I figured as much. Angels are the syndicate of Shangri-La." He looks down, glancing at the pale figure. "Alright. I'll do it." Mars, here I come!"

The angel chuckles a bit and snaps his fingers.

"Here we go again."

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And there you go! That's Chapter 2 for ya! Please review, alright? I'll give you a cookie if you do!


	4. Chapter 3: Rebirth to the Blues

Here's Chapter 3! The plot is finally gonna come into play here, so enjoy! I still don't own Bebop, and there's some language, so, just a warning.

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Spike coughs, waving away smoke. "What the hell was that?"

"Transportation. Welcome to the Bebop. Or rather, welcome back."

The smoke clears and Spike finds himself standing on the bridge on something that looks suspiciously like Jet's Bebop, looking at another person; a young girl is sitting on the sofa, (which had been re-upholstered light blue) reading the contents of an envelope. She looks up.

"Well?" she says. "Come over here. I've gotta get you into a body and settled into the Bebop while Lefer takes care of our account."

"A body?" Spike asks, a little overwhelmed.

"Yes…a body. Most people aren't transparent through their centers." She points at his stomach and he reflexively looks down.

"What the hell?!"

She sighs. "Alright, enough profanity. Get your clear butt over here."

Spike cautiously walks/drifts over to her and seats himself in a light blue armchair. She watches him get settled, then reaches down into her messenger bag and pulls out what appears to be a plastic crescent moon in shades of blue and gray, with a gem-like object set in the center, where the two tips meet. Feeling around the edge of it, she fishes out a wire with what appears to be a guitar chip on the end of it. Disconnecting it, she palms the chip and retracts the wire. After she placed the moon on the table, she taps the gem twice with the chip. With a slight hum, the device activates, the jewel projecting a field of stars. Another tap, and the stars disappear, to be replaced with a simple beige background, like that of a manila folder, with a blank photo and unanswered questions. She glances to the side, at Spike.

"Well?" she asks.

"What?"

She gestured at the screen. "This'll be your new life. Your history, date of birth, blood type…everything."

Spike shrugs. "So?"

She sighs in an exasperated manner. "You can at least choose what you'll look like."

He shrugs again. "I don't really care…"

"Figures," she mutters, then taps the gem, moving around a cursor with the guitar pick. When she's finished, she taps the jewel again. The moon hummed, then spit out a small computer chip. With a final tap, she re-plugged the guitar chip back in, sitting back.

"Well," she says. "That should do it. Now all we hafta do is wait for Lefer."

Spike stares at her. "That's it? But I'm still see through!"

She rolls her eyes. "I can't make bodies and stick errant souls in them. I make the blueprints, Lefer will follow them, and you'll be alive to the world again."

"Seriously?"

"Yup. And don't worry, we've got plenty of firepower, so you won't be lacking in that department." She gets up and walks to the fridge, opening it and taking out a drink. Spike shifts around, bored. She glances over at him as she drinks.

"Don't worry. He's almost home."

There was a muffled roar, like that of an engine, and a thump. After a few minutes of silence, the door opens and a figure walks in. Spike reels back.

"It's…it's _you_!"

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Spike stretched, loosening muscles that he hadn't had in twenty years. A few strands of forest-green hair fell into his cerulean eyes; he swept them aside irritably, but they fell back. Giving up, he sat down next to Lefer. He hadn't realized that Junefrost's Lefer was his angelic intruder until he'd walked through the door.

That door was the last memory he'd had for a while. Afterwards, there was a blur of odd colors, a feeling of flying and euphoria, then a fixation, a center to the chaos.

And then he'd woken up, sprawled on the sofa, staring at the ceiling fan. He'd noticed that there were glow-in-the-dark stars stuck to the blades. There was soft blues music playing in the background. He'd sat up slowly, unused to the feeling of a body. Both Lefer and Junefrost had looked up from their instruments, an ebony saxophone for her and a silver trumpet for him.

She'd smiled at him and Lefer had saluted, then gestured at himself and his companion.

"Lefer. Junefrost."

She'd sketched a salute at him.

"Welcome back."


	5. Chapter 4: Space Cowboy

Here's Chapter 4; sorry it took so long! I hate typing….

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Spike peered at the mug shot of the convict.

"You sure that's him? A big bounty, but he doesn't look very intimidating…"

"He's really a small fry, but he's smart and has eluded capture several times," Junefrost remarked from his shoulder. He felt a few tugs on his ponytail, and he turned his head a bit to find a long braid instead of his expected fall of green.

"What did you DO?!"

She looked indigent. "I braided it, that's all."

He grabbed it back and starts unbraiding it. "Having long hair was bad enough; I don't need to look like a country girl from the farmlands, " he muttered.

Junefrost sniggered. "That can easily be accomplished."

"Now Junefrost, be nice," Lefer chided playfully from his perch on the rail. He hopped off and sat next to her on the couch (which was becoming crowded). She immediately attacked his long silver hair and began braiding it. Spike sighed and went back to reading the bounty's information, scrolling down with the chip. An alert blared out; Lefer and Junefrost got to their feet, heading for the bridge. Junefrost looked back over her shoulder and waved him forward.

"C'mon, Mr. Sirius. We've gotta check in."

Spike sighed and stood up, following her. The door swished open and closed behind them. He smiled sadly.

"The stars are all the same."

She looked over her shoulder at him. "What did ya think we named the syndicate after?" She turned her head and stared out the huge windows to the right. "Twenty years isn't that long in the grand scheme of things."

"Alright, you two. Enough celestial pondering; the checkpoint's coming up," Lefer interrupted. Junefrost started guiltily, then walked over to seat herself next to him in her own chair, plugging in her music player to the mainframe, using it as her link between the technology of the Bebop and herself. Spike settled himself in the last chair and put his hands behind his head, leaning back. He didn't have to handle any technology (not that he would even if he could), so he just relaxed and stayed out of the way of Lefer and Junefrost as they manually docked the Bebop in the scanning station. Spike glanced at them and nodded to their questioning stares.

The main starscape before them suddenly flickered and distorted, revealing the cloaked scanning station. Metal beams and struts were all around them, colored a dull gray, free of any graffiti or guild marks. A subscreen opened up and zoomed its way into the center of the screen. The sturdy-looking man in it looked at the three of them dispassionately then consulted two files on the desk before him.

"Lefer Angebot. Brown hair, long, blue eyes. Roughly 200 lbs.; blood type O. Confirmed," he droned. "Jule Valenti. Your hair has changed color. That is unauthorized."

Junefrost pouted and flipped her platinum and ruby hair over her shoulder. "Aww, but Inspector Bradley…" she whined. "I filed the report and everything. Maybe you just haven't got it yet…"

Inspector Bradley made a note on his paper. "I'll let it slide if I find the files. Green eyes. About 150 lbs.; blood type B. Confirmed." He turned his attention to Spike. "And who is this, Mr. Angebot?"

Lefer waved a hand in the air. "Our newest crewmate. I sent his files to you a few weeks ago."

Bradley picked up a few sheaves of paper and considered them.

"Alphonse Sirius. Green hair, long, blue eyes. Roughly 180 lbs.; blood type A. Affiliated with the Bebop and its crew, works as a bounty hunter. Owns the Sailfish 7. Former resident of Archain City." He looked up at Lefer. "It seems legit, but we will be checking Archain's files. For now, we'll let you through. Make sure he gets a bounty pass so the Patrol doesn't arrest him if he blows up something in pursuit of a head."

Lefer nodded and Bradley cut the communication line. All the Bebop crew had a sensation of moving forward, then the scan station disappeared. Lefer and Junefrost busied themselves with launching off again, maneuvering to the jump gate. With a speed boost, they hurtled in and were immediately caught by the waiting current. Swept away, the stars turning into blurs on every side of them, Lefer and Junefrost dropped their disguises and assumed their natural colorings.

She sighed and flipped her now black hair over her shoulders, fastening it back into a low ponytail, then got up and wandered off in search of food. Lefer held his position, confirming their destination, then got up and left. Spike stayed in his chair, looking into the warp and remembering.

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So, the story begins! Please review now that you've read it; Kim-san gets a chocolate chip cookie cause she reviewed!


	6. Chapter 5: Hunting

GAHOMGIMSOSORRY!!!!

This took way too long…my apologies.

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"Yo! Spike-a-roo!"

He opens one eye and reflexively catches the object thrown at him. Sitting up, he regards the palm-sized box. Looking up at Junefrost, who's counting the amount of similar boxes inside the bag she's holding, he asks, "Are these cigarettes?"

She does a quick calculation. "280," she answers, then blinks and looks back at Spike. "No. It's Rhapsody."

He raises an eyebrow. "Which is…?"

"Something that you need to get into your system unless you _want _your body to start rotting away while you're still in it…"

Spike makes a face. "Got a lighter?"

She pulls a squat metal one out of a pocket of her camouflage messenger bag and tosses it to him.

"Keep it. It's yours."

He taps the box and removes a Rhapsody, examining it. "So, it's light purple with a light blue filter?"

She glares at him. "Don't insult it; just smoke it, for goodness sake!" Setting the brown paper bag down next to the center table, she removes all the Rhapsody boxes from it and stacks them into two towers; seven in one while the other had six.

Spike shrugs and lights up, inhaling the smoke, then blowing it out in a cloud. He stares into it for a few seconds.

"Honeysuckle?" he asks.

Junefrost replied without even looking up from her box arranging. "That's what I've been told they taste like."

"There are sparkles in the smoke."

"Which you can only see if you stare at it long enough. It smells like honeysuckle, too, did you notice?"

Spike stared at her for a few seconds, then inhaled cautiously. "Kind of like the gardens at Shangri-la."

"Kinda." She turned and yelled at the room door. "Oy, Leaf! Rhapsody's here!"

"Coming, Junefrost," he answered. She nodded to herself, then snapped her fingers. Reaching under the armchair's base, she pushed a button and removed the central core from the bottom. Walking over, she plunked it in front of Spike.

"Take your pick."

He looked at the wide arrangement of weapons inside the box, ranging from the latest guns and grenades to ancient bombs and flintlock pistols. He picked one of these up and examined it.

"Does this thing actually still work?"

Junefrost glanced at his choice. "Yes, but I'd recommend another one. That one's mostly for show."

Lefer walked in as Spike kept on picking through the weapons. Reaching over Junefrost's shoulder, he snagged a pack of Rhapsody, tapped it, and opened it. Using a lighter from his pants pocket, he lit up and inhaled gratefully, falling off the back of the sofa he was leaning on and landing upside-down on the cushion next to Junefrost. He exhaled at the ceiling fan, then glanced up and over at her, smiling.

"Gracias, chica," he said.

She rolled her eyes. "De nada, mi amigo."

Lefer then looked up at Spike and eyed the gun the bounty hunter was sighting around the room with.

"Not that one," the angel said. "It doesn't fire straight; the barrel's a little crooked. Junefrost hit the last person a little too hard, and I haven't had time to fix it."

Spike glanced over at Junefrost, who was innocently contemplating the fan with her dark chocolate eyes.

"Thanks for the warning," he remarked.

"About what?" Lefer asks. "The gun or Junefrost's temper?"

Spike considered her a little more. "Both," he finally answered.

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The Bebop cruises down, skimming the clouds, and plunges through the layer. Trailing wisps of the fluffy water vapor, Lefer brings it in, to land about as gracefully as the hunk of metal could, at the docking port. Spike, Junefrost, and the angel all disembarked, disguised, armed, and dangerous. Leaning against the rail, Spike peered down at the ground, which was some 1000 feet or so below him. Junefrost grabbed the back of his shirt, hauling him off, saying quite loudly something or other about him being afraid of heights. He couldn't help but chuckle a little as she let go and allowed him to walk normally. The outfit she'd donned to match her disguise looked supremely uncomfortable and was totally out of character for Junrfrost. He supposed it matched Jule's though, and he couldn't help but sigh appreciatively as he watched her butt through her tight black mini-skirt. She stopped and glared back at him, as if she had read what he was thinking, then shook her head and kept walking, following Lefer down the docking port's landscape. Spike hurried to catch them, then leaned down to Jule's ear as he drew level with her.

"So, this colony is new?" he asked.

She glanced back and nodded, brushing away a handful of platinum hair, the last tre inches or so tipped with ruby.

"Sarali used to be a mining town, but after the industries bled the asteroid dry, they found out that the solar wind whipping through the canyons made for a great ride. So the neighborhoods wouldn't screw up the perfect waves, they built the city in the sky. The levels are arranged from the best off as the ones closest to the docking port to the worst off, below all the others, where all the junk from the higher levels falls." She turned forward again. "That's where our bounty is."

Lefer glanced back to find that his two companions were almost out of sight and dropped back to meet up with them. The blue and khaki clothes he'd chosen were cut in the same style he usually would wear, only in different colors. Despite the trench coat, he radiated calm and control, without a hint of shadiness. Unlike Spike, he'd allowed Junefrost to braid his hair, and so his chestnut locks were tied back with a blue ribbon to match his eyes. The pair of small, square spectacles perched on the bridge of his nose only served to accentuate the carefully cultivated aura of incompetence, which drew attention away from the gun he'd slipped into a shoulder holster.

Jule wore hers in plain sight, strapped to a pale thigh, just above the top of her knee-high black boots. Despite the short, extremely tight black top that allowed the world to examine her curves and the diamond butterfly she'd pierced her bellybutton with, Spike knew she was packing some serious extra artillery in the large, black leather jacket she wore over her clothes. Spike, or rather Alphonse, was also loaded with two guns, a couple of old-school fragmentation grenades, and rounds to reload with. Dressed in the clothes that suited him best: the jeans, jacket, and shoes of his former life, he felt in his element. Tapping out a Rhapsody, he lit up and trailed smoke as he followed his two companions. They walked farther and farther down, descending into levels that grew steadily gloomier and filthier.

Finally, Lefer stopped in the middle of the street (which was abandoned) and looked around. "He's close by," he says.

"Good," Jule mutters, "My feet hurt from all that walking."

Lefer laughs at her, then motions to a nearby bar. "Your turn. I believe he's in there. See if you can bring him out. I'll be here; Spike, you go around back."

The bounty hunter considers the angel. "What am I waiting for?"

A wicked smile spreads across his face. "One bounty head."

Spike raises his eyebrows but heads for the alley, while Jule walks toward the entrance to the bar. Lefer crosses to the opposite side of the street and melts into the shadows there.

Inside the building, Jule saunters nonchalantly up to the barkeep, well aware of the eyes on her. Sidling up to the bar, she leans on it, oozing feminity, and pulls out a picture of the bounty head.

"Have you seen this man?" she purrs. "I'm afraid I've got a bit of a score to settle with him, so…"

The barkeep eyes her, then grins. "Aye. He's over there." He nods at the corner. Jule straightens up and glances over her shoulder, considering the figure sitting at the table there. With a nod, she straightens up and un-holsters her gun, firing three shots at him. The first breaks the glass in front of him, and the other two punch holes in the wall beside the man's head. She smiles sweetly.

"I'd run if I were you."

He doesn't need to be told twice. Before she's even done speaking, he's bolted out of his chair and is scrambling toward the door. Jule sends a few more bullets after him, chasing him out of the establishment. Out in the street, he's intercepted by an apparently harmless young man, standing square in his path.

"Out of my way!" he snarls, moving to shove past him.

"It's not very polite to act so rudely," Lefer replies, an innocent smile on his face.

Before the man can react to his comment, he steps forward and slugs him. Reeling from the blow, he staggers into the alley. Leaning on the wall, he regains his senses, then sniffs the air in puzzlement. He only has time to say one word before he's laid low by Spike.

"Honeysuckles?"

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And there you go. Sorry it took so long; I had a case of typer's block. As always reviews are appreciated.


	7. Chapter 6: Home Again

I'm really sorry for not posting in so long, but I gave the roughs to a friend, and it took forever to get them back!

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Junefrost leans back, stretching. Next to her, Lefer punches in numbers on their computer device, calculating how many bounties the three of them had bagged in the past month. Triumphantly, he calls out the total.

"20, 000 woolongs!"

Junefrost glances over. "Does that include expenses?"

"Yup. That's the profit on our account."

"Really? Huh. We _have_ been busy. You think it's about time we went back to home base?"

Lefer considers the glow-in-the-dark stars on the fan. "Yes."

She hops up. "Okee-dokee. New course, Mars! Duh-duhduh-duh-duh-daaaaaaa!!"

She speeds out, heading for the bridge. Lefer snorts in amusement, watching her zoom out, then goes back to the computer, using the chip to scroll down the page of Martian news. He sighs as he reads about attack after attack on innocent civilians, the result of the power struggle between the Northern Star Syndicate and the Blue Lilies syndicate. He feels the Bebop shift course and the slight feeling of nausea as the artificial gravity cuts out for a second before the gyroscopes catch up. Tired from the near–constant hunting they'd been doing, he lies back on the couch and quietly drops off to sleep.

When Junefrost pokes her head back in, she grins and dives for her messenger bag, opening her sketchbook, flipping past the drawings of Spike, both as he was and as Alphonse, Lefer, and Faye with Jet. At a blank page, she starts sketching Lefer sleeping, amusing herself as the Bebop hurtled through space towards Mars.

Thus, the two of them were completely unprepared when the pirates attacked.

When the first missiles struck, they shorted out the lights; Lefer, who'd fallen off the sofa at impact, leapt up and ran for the bridge door, slipping through. As the emergency lights went on, Junefrost yelled at Spike.

"Spike-a-roo! Pirates! C'mon, get in the Sailfish!"

She hops out of the chair and runs for the hanger door. Spike slides down the railing of the stairs and paces her, the two of them breaking in at the same time. They each leapt into their respective ships, Spike's Sailfish 7, a sleek fighter a lot like his old ship, and Junefrost's Enfinity, a small fighter packing a lot of firepower. The second they were buckled in, Lefer opened the hanger doors ad they shot out, blasting into the void.

"Two 'o clock and twelve 'o clock. They were waiting for us," Lefer's voice crackles out.

"Roger," Junefrost and Spike say.

With a roar of boosters, the two of them zoomed off. Each targeting system locks onto ships, each pilot waits until they're in point-blank range before they fire. After the first round, the flight paths of Spike and Junefrost cross. Spike's enemies are more numerous, but that's no big deal for the Enfinity's scattershot; Junefrost's enemies were larger, but they were a cinch for the Sailfish's Tsunami Wave. The two of them flew back to the Bebop triumphant.

Lefer was standing in the living room, smoking a Rhapsody and cradling his head in his hand as he tried to tuck some wires back into the wall. He glanced back at the two of them as they came in, then gave up and went over to sit beside Junefrost on the couch.

"We almost to the scan station?" she asks.

"'Bout an hour away," he answers.

Spike leans forward. "What are those things for, anyways?"

Junefrost and Lefer look at each other. "Might as well," she mutters. Lefer nods and looks back at Spike.

"Okay, Spike. It's been twenty years since you've last visited Mars. A lot has changed, some of it because of you."

Spike raises an eyebrow. "Me?"

"Yes, you," Junefrost answers. "When you destroyed the Red Dragon Syndicate, the world of Mars was shaken to its core. The Syndicate had its paws in everything, as you well know. When you dropped dead in front of their building, there was some major upheaval. Not a lot of people liked the Syndicate, so they hailed you as a hero. By the way, your body's buried next to Julia's. We made sure of that."

"Anyways." Lefer picks up the dropped line. "That's part of the reason we made your body look like that. Anyone thinking of Spike probably wouldn't give you a second glance after the hair color."

"Yeah, about that," Spike interrupts. "Why _do_ the two of you change yourselves every time we hit one of those stations?"

Junefrost grins evilly. "'Cause the real Junefrost and Lefer don't exist. I may have been put in the database after I was born, but after I met Lefer, I erased myself and stuck Jule in instead. Every time we come to Mars, we stay like this. That way, if we get inta' trouble, we can get out quickly. All it takes is a little shape shifting and poof! We're gone."

"Shape shifting, huh? How come I can't do that? I know he can," Spike gestures at Lefer. "because he's an angel, but if I can't, why can you?"

Lefer waves. "I'm not 'just an angel'. You're looking at the top of the pecking order here. I'm so special that my specialness rubs off on others."

"Or it could just be all the Rhapsody I've inhaled on accident through the years. Since I don't need it, it may have decided to make itself useful in another way," Junefrost puts in.

"And why don't you need Rhapsody?" Spike presses.

Junefrost waves her hands in the air. "Because I haven't died yet! But that's beside the point; we were telling you why they had scan stations!"

Spike leans back and relaxes. "Alright. No need to freak out or anything."

She sighs. "Naturally, when the Red Dragon fell, more powers were waiting in the wings to fill the space vacated by it. Our syndicate, the Northern Star, was one of them." With a grimace, she continues.

"When the time came, we thought we'd have an easy transition. But somehow, the Blue Lilies appeared and blocked our way."

"The Liles are just like the Dragon syndicate was, you see," Lefer continues. "While the Northern Star is a peacemaker; we wish to help to help the people of Mars. The Lilies just want control. And while our power struggle goes on, Mars falls apart under the strain."

"The Lilies are using every trick in the book, and they've even stooped to attacking innocent civilians. All of the incidents have been accredited to terrorism, though and, as a result, security around the ports has beefed up a lot. Everyone's personal stats have been placed in databases where the Inspectors can pull it up to examine. If you change your appearance a little, you have to file it. Your occupation, whether or not you need passes for it, all of that is in there. Even the scan stations are cloaked; the only way to find them is to have a software installed in your computer that allows you to know where it is," Junefrost says.

Spike stares a little. "Sounds like Mars has changed a lot."

"Well, twenty years is a long time for a human. And, of course, there are ways around this extra security. If you're a good hacker or computer programmer, you can create or jack a program that allows you to see the stations. There's more than one Inspector out there willing to let you through for a couple hundred woolongs. And I've heard rumors of illegal jump rings," Lefer says.

"But the funnest part is," Junefrost remarks, "when they find out that you've done something wrong. If you haven't sent in a change form, they'll stick you in prison for a little while. Miss a scan station, and they have the authority to shoot you down under the assumption that if you miss, you don't have the proper software and are thus illegal or a threat." She sighs. "Mars _has_ changed a lot, Spike. It's not the relatively peaceful home that you remember." She glances to the side. "But that's what the Northern Star's working on. To help Mars become the free port that it was."

Struck speechless, Spike stares over the shoulders of the two. They wait patiently for his reaction.

"So….," he finally says. "You're telling me that _I'm_ the one who has to make Mars go back to its original state." He looks at the both of them. "You're crazy! The two of you! There's no way I can do that on my own!"

Lefer cut in. "You won't be on your own. The people from the Northern Star will help."

"A lot of good that'll do me! How much help can a bunch of political officers give?"

"More than you'd expect," Lefer countered. "Considering over three-fourths of them have been brought back from death like you have, Spike. Don't judge by appearance or status alone."

"That's insane! How could you have gotten so many people just for this?"

Junefrost grinned, showing her teeth in a rather sinister smile. "A little insanity makes life interesting, Spike. And besides. They're not all souls from Shangri-la."

Spike stares at her. "Why does that smile creep me out more than a little?" he asks Lefer. The angel can only shrug.

"She gets like that sometimes. Just stay out of her way and don't make her angry."

Their scrutiny of Junefrost is cut short, however, by the beeping of an alarm. The two of them jump off the couch and run for the bridge door, changing as they go. By the time the slip through the metal doorway, Lefer's hair had changed from silver to brown and his twin silver disk eyes have gained a pupil and icy blue irises while Junefrost has completed the transformation to Jule. Spike follows them at a more leisurely pace and seats himself right as Jule and Lefer switch from autopilot to manual for docking. He braces himself for an interrogation, but Jule laughs and waves the minute the Inspector's face pops up on screen.

"Hello, Inspector Lacadomo! How are things?"

The man on screen waves back. "Hello Jule. We haven't seen the Bebop on Mars for quite a while. Chasing heads?"

"Yup." She nods. "And we got a lot of woolongs for them."

The Inspector glances at his papers. "And your new crewmate. Alphonse Sirius, correct?"

Spike nods cautiously. Lacadomo sighs and waves the papers around.

"We just got these files a few days ago; all the stations in the Mereangel system are so out of date," he explains. "Bunch of stuffed shirts, the lot of them." He glances down at the papers again. "Looks all good. Go on through then."

"Thanks Lacadomo!"

He waves goodbye, then the screen blips off and they move forward to the warp rings. When the starscape changes to blurs of yellow, Lefer and Junefrost assume their natural forms. She swivels around in her chair and looks at Spike.

"You should remember what he looks like, Spike-a-roo. Lacadomo's part of the Northern Star syndicate," she says.

Spike looks at her. "The Northern Star have Inspectors in their ranks?"

She nods. "Yup. As do the Lilies. And before you ask, yes, he's dead."

He sits back. "Huh. That's weird…," he mutters to himself. "Long blond hair. Green eyes." He glances down at Junefrost. "So. I'll see him again?"

"You'll probably work with everyone who's died before in the Star," she replies, more concerned with untangling the wire of her earbuds. She glances up and notices his tension. "Hey, relax, Spike-a-roo. Things'll work out alright, I promise. We'll get to Mars and you'll see."

"In the meantime," Lefer says, "you'd better rest up. The first thing we'll do after we get there is go check in with the Star. You'll probably have to re-acquaint yourself with the streets, so…" He shrugs. "We'll probably be there for a while.

Spike sighs. "I can't believe it. I'm really going back to Mars…"

Something beeps faintly, and Junefrost bursts from her chair and rushes out. Spike stares after her.

Lefer just laughs and gets up, following her. The bounty hunter shrugs and does the same.

They come into the living room, and find Junefrost sitting on the sofa, devouring ramen with a pair off chopsticks, her eyes glued to the monitor of her computer where a status report is scrolling away. Lefer reaches around her and picks up his bowl of rice.

"I can't understand why you like that stuff," he remarks after taking a few bites. "It's not even technically real food; it's probably over fifty percent preservatives…"

She glares at him. "It's my ramen and you're not getting any. I was deprived as a child, and I enjoy the artificial pork taste."

Spike gives here another glance. "She eats that junk as a meal?"

Lefer sighs. "She could survive on what the rest of us would consider a snack."

She finishes her ramen, presses pause on her screen, and wanders off into the kitchen, coming back with a plastic bottle of a dark drink. Arranging herself on the couch, she presses play and keeps reading. Lefer and Spike finish both their lunches and go clean up. (Or rather, Lefer clean ups up whiles Spike sites beside Junefrost and tries to figure out what she's reading.)

After a few minutes, Spike is thoroughly confused. "What the hell is that?"

She glances over at him, sipping her Coca-cola. "Disney."

"But."

"But what?"

"Why does it look like something else from the back?"

"What?! Y'think I'm such a crappy hacker that I can't disguise what I'm doin'?"

"You have an accent."

"That's beside the point."

Spike points at the screen. "It's a cartoon. About mice. That _talk_."

She does her evil grin. "Perhaps. Or perhaps it's an encrypted message from the Star."

He stares at her. "Don't do that. It's really creepy."

"If you must know it's _The Great Mouse Detective_."

"And what does that have to do with me?"

She shrugs as Lefer comes back in and sits down. The angel glances over at the screen and blinks.

"I would've thought you would watch something like Beauty and the Beast," he says.

"Did that already," she flippantly answers.

Spike just shrugs at Lefer, who sighs.

She rolls her eyes and stretches, still grinning like a Cheshire Cat, then leaps to her feet.

"I'm gonna pack. Make sure we don't hit anything too violently, else you might find a new hole in the stern." She skips away unconcernedly.

Spike stares after her, then transfers his gaze to Lefer. "A hole?" he asks.

The angel shrugs. "She's very good at making illegal explosives that look legal. Unfortunately, that means that a lot of bang has to be packed into a small space." He smiles. "Things get a little messy for the person on the receiving end of one of her grenades."

Spike shakes his head. "I guess Junefrost's right," he mutters. "Insanity _does_ make life interesting."

"That's the spirit," Lefer quips, standing up. "Just keep repeating that to yourself over and over again. You might even start believing it after the hundredth time or so."

Spike's head snaps up, and the angel grins innocently at him before disappearing into the bridge. The green-haired bounty hunter decides he has no defense against the oddity surrounding him and pursues solace in a blue-purple Rhapsody.

--

Junefrost looks down into Spike's face. "You know," she remarks to Lefer. "He looks so innocent." With a shrug, she finishes her thought of _oh well_ and crouches down until she's level with his ear.

Taking a deep breath, she yells, "**HEY! SPIKE-A-ROO! GET UP YOU LAZY BUM!!**"

Spike shoots several feet up in the air and lands ungracefully on the floor. Rubbing his ear, murder on his mind, he looks around for the unfortunate soul who woke him up.

Junefrost is nowhere in sight.

Muttering curse words under his breath, he stalks toward the bridge.

Lefer looks up at the slam of a door (how Spike managed to slam an _automatic _door is anyone's guess) and hides his grin. Behind him, Junefrost is calmly shoveling small canisters into the largest pocket of her messenger bag. When the last sphere was inside, she easily closed the flap of the bag, fastened it, and waited a few seconds. After about five, she opened the bag again to a totally empty pocket. With a satisfied nod, she fits some water, food, her computer, and several other little things inside before closing it and slinging it over her shoulder. Looking up at Spike, she smiles and waves.

"Hiya!" she says. "Did you enjoy your nap?"

He starts forward, seriously considering strangling her, then stops, and sighs. "Never mind," he mutters, then goes to sit by Lefer. The angel glances over at him from behind his book.

"Look, Spike," he says, gesturing at the front window. "It's Mars."

Spike turns around and stares at the red, green, and blue gem suspended before him in the endless starscape. "Mars," he breathes.

Junefrost comes up behind him and leans on the back of his chair. He looks up at her, between her two supporting arms. She smiles down at him, an innocent, bright grin.

"Welcome home."

--

….phew


End file.
